Is Nana Patekar pushy? Maybe Shimit Amin and Sahil Saple, ex directors of Ab Tak Chhappan sequel, have an answer to that one

Buzz is that Ram Gopal Varma is fussing over a certain ghost nowadays. But this time it’s nothing supernatural. We are talking about ghost director Nana Patekar who is all set to direct the sequel of Ab Tak Chhappan. Apparently, the plan was to give the credit to someone else and have Nana ghost direct the film, but that fell through when Nana took the meaning of “ghost” as seriously as “director” and scared away the other official directors. RGV first chose Shimit Amin to direct ATC 2, but Nana wasn’t happy as he had had several differences with Shimit during the making of ATC. So, RGV moved on to his protege, Sahil Saple.ATC 2 was to be Saple’s debut movie as a director, but now even he has opted out after he reportedly realised he wasn’t going to get to be the actual director of the film.

Now the movie is officially in Nana’s hands. RGV claims that the decision was taken because Sahil wanted to work on another script. However, Sahil claims he isn’t working on any other script and he opted out for other reasons. Maybe the thought of Nana checking his ever move wasn’t a pleasant thought for the newbie. Anyway, now Nana is all set to return to the role of Sadhu Agashe. But with the director’s hat to balance, will he be able to recreate the magic of the first film? We wonder…

The maverick filmmaker recently made this announcement but surprisingly the sequel will not be directed by Shimit Amin

Though Ram Gopal Varma was the guy who trusted director Shimit Amin and gave him a break with his home production, Ab Tak Chhappan, it seems that the two have drifted apart since then. Shimit moved on to greener pastures, and his last two films, Rocket Singh Salesman Of The Year and Chak De! India have been produced by Yash Raj Films. When it comes to sequels, usually the director who has helmed the earlier version is roped in for the next but it seems that RGV has made an exception as he has roped in a new director to fill in for Amin. Buzz is that Ramu didn’t like the way Shimit shot Ab Tak Chhappan due to which the film’s budget went haywire. Apparently that is the reason why Sahil Saple has been brought on board. Saple is said to be an old associate of RGV and has earned his trust after assisting him in many films. We heard that Nana Patekar has agreed to play the leading man in the sequel and he seems to have no qualms about Shimit not directing the sequel. Let us wait and watch if Saple proves to be a perfect replacement for Shimit Amin or not.

Ram Gopal Varma, Bollywood’s maverick producer-director, is currently busy with his forthcoming film Department. But, as we heard from our sources, RGV is also interested in making a sequel to his earlier blockbuster Ab Tak Chhappan. The 2004 film, which was directed by Shimit Amin, is still remembered for Nana Patekar’s exemplary performance of a rude and tough police inspector Sadhu Agashe. RGV has been toying with the idea for some time now, but Nana has been busy shooting and promoting his Marathi movie Deool (which is also the Marathi film debut of Naseeruddin Shah). Now that Nana has completed his commitments to Deool, we hear that Ramu met the veteran actor and successfully convinced him to reprise his role for the sequel. However, Sahil Saple, and not Shimit Amin, will direct the sequel. While RGV is yet to announce the title of this project, we can only hope it will be successful at the box office and rid his fans of memories of films like Not A Love Story, Rakta Charitra and Rann.